> Do we really want government bureaucrats being the only ones with access to your conviction records?? I sense a tone of sarcastic incredulity in this questio

> Do we really want government bureaucrats being the only ones with access to your conviction records?? I sense a tone of sarcastic incredulity in this question but... yes? If you want to run background checks on people that's one thing, but A) it should cost money if for no other reason than to stop people scraping other's information for no reason, B) it should only be accessible if you can provide a justification for why you need that information, like you're trying to hire someone for a job or something. Like in a minority of cases, for example the sex offender registry[1] comes to mind, I can understand why the public has an interest in having that information be readily available. For your average Joe Blow with a parking ticket or who stole a beer once? If he's done his time, leave him be. 1: Of course that system has all kinds of it's own issues but that's another conversation.